Brian Robiskie

Browns offensive coordinator Brian Daboll said he'll keep running Hillis as long as he's effective. We'll see. That's what the Browns did with Jerome Harrison in the final month of last season. Harrison has since been downgraded to "meh."

Eric Mangini and Daboll eventually will get judged on how the offense evolves. A big part of that is the grooming of Mangini's hand-picked wide receiver tandem, Mohamed Massaquoi and Brian Robiskie. It's not a good sign for Mangini in his second season that the Browns look respectable only when handing the ball off, no matter how much fun it is to watch Hillis steamrollering tacklers.

Don't get me wrong. There's a lot to like about Hillis. He's been the Browns' most productive option. They just won't be a serious player in the NFL until he's not.